NFU v Lancaster City (Evo Prem 18-19)

Ferriby entertain seventeenth-placed Lancaster City on Saturday an Evostik Premier Division match. The reverse fixture at The Giant Axe in September was a 0-0 draw.

Lancaster have won three and lost seven of their away games so far.. They have scored 9 goals and scored 21 in those games. It is a record that will give Ferriby hopes of a win, especially as the team felt they ought to have won the reverse fixture.

Lancaster’s last home game was a goalless draw against at home to Stafford a fortnight ago so the side should be feeling rather refreshed.

Ferriby will be looking for back-to-back wins following the victory at Grantham last Saturday

The Villagers may have surprised people with the win at Grantham last Saturday but it was well-deserved. It was a performance that should give the players some confidence as they move in to the second-half of the season.

The team still lies at the bottom of the table but a run of good results could see that change.

The side has been threatening a win for a number of weeks but the opportunities to get good results have been squandered. Opponents have been gifted soft goals, unnecessary free-kicks have been conceded which have put The Villagers under pressure and too much possession has been wasted.

By and large, that all changed at Grantham. The side got off to a good start with a Jake Martindale goal after four minutes. A sloppy goal was concede for the equaliser shortly afterwards but from that point on, The Villagers produced a performance with few errors and much good football.

The usual commitment was there but the side showed that they are learning to manage a game and were able to close-out the final 20 minutes.

Given the number of goals that Ferriby have conceded late in the game this season, the final 15 minutes were a nervous time for The Villagers small band of travelling fans.

However, the side’s game-management was spot on and they ended up deserved winners.

Joe Lamplough was in charge for the games as Paul Foot was unavailable due to a prior engagement. Lamplough was delighted with the result,

“The way the lads applied themselves today was absolutely brilliant and credit to them. I’m buzzing for them, to be fair, We’ve got to take that ahead of us because it means nothing if we don’t go ahead next week and apply ourselves in the same way.

“We should be going into games wanting to win and backing ourselves to do that. Paul and myself have been telling the lads that they’ve got to get to the next level of football and I think they showed that they have done that today.

“The back-four did well in terms of pushing-up and controlling the game from this back. This allowed us to get forward more and allows everybody else to get tighter in midfield and at their defence.

Although he was not at the game, Foot had this to say;

“Two things that were really important were one, how the defence has worked together and put in a solid shift and, two, Jake Martindale getting his first goal for the club. He’s been fantastic since I started here

Skipper James Piercy was as delighted as could be expected with Saturday’s win,

“The 2-1 win was great and the lads applied themselves brilliantly. To a man, everyone put in one hell of a shift right until the 90th minute and we fully deserved the victory. To be honest I think everyone did brilliantly, whether that was starting or coming off the substitutes’ bench, but I have to give credit to the lads in the back four because I thought they defended superbly throughout and took on board what Paul Foot and Joe Lamplough have been trying to implement.

“Gary Bradshaw has made a real impression on us, too. Bradders was excellent for us playing in the middle of midfield last Saturday and his intelligence and experience was vital for us. It’s excellent for all of the young lads now to learn off Bradders and watch just what he does on the pitch and try to learn from that.”

Looking to Saturday, Foot comments,

“After a win last week and a couple of positive training sessions I’m hoping we get something from the game.

“I don’t want our lads thinking because we’ve won that’s it, we still have to stay switched on and alert. Lancaster will be coming for the three points, too, so it won’t be an easy game.

“I’m trying to get the right mentality in the team now and I think the lads are enjoying it!

“There’s a bit more ruthlessness with each other in training now and the team has a harder edge to it which is needed when you are at the bottom.

“I’m just demanding more from them, but it’s only what Joe and me know that the players have! Myself and Joe are winners and want to win, even in training and that’s what we’re trying to get across to them which is showing now.

“I’m trying to get more workmanlike players in that are not afraid to get stuck in and are not afraid to work hard. We are not in a position to have players with loads of skill, so it’s time we dig deep and work hard first and foremost to get us away from the bottom of the league”

Hopefully, there will be a good-sized crowd at The Chadwick Stadium on Saturday. The club’s off-field position remains difficult and good gates are one way in which the supporters can help.

Dan Nichols returns from a three-match suspension. Ben Leyland is still suspended. Foot is still waiting to see if Alex Wollerton’s loan period from Leeds United will be extended. Josh Vickers will be in the squad following his debut at Grantham last Saturday.